26 October 2009 - Bloomberg
By Caroline Alexander
Oct. 26 (Bloomberg) -- Foreign Secretary David Miliband said Britain should “embrace, shape and lead” European Union foreign policy as he warned that the bloc risks losing global clout to the U.S. and China.
The Lisbon Treaty, which would streamline EU decision- making and create a permanent presidency and a foreign ministry, gives Europe the chance defend the gains of the last 60 years and address new challenges, Miliband said in speech in London today.
“A strong Britain in a strong Europe is the best way to preserve and advance our interests in the modern world,” Miliband said in a speech at the International Institute of Strategic Studies research organization in London. “To be frightened of European foreign policy is blinkered, fatalistic and wrong. Britain should embrace it, shape it and lead it.”
With only Czech President Vaclav Klaus holding out against the new governing treaty, EU leaders are preparing to decide who should get the two top jobs. Miliband has publicly ruled himself out a contender for the post of EU foreign minister and thrown his weight behind former Prime Minister Tony Blair for the job of president. EU leaders are due to meet in Brussels Oct. 29-30.
“The choice for Europe is simple -- get our act together and make the European Union a leader on the world stage or become spectators in a G-2 world shaped by the United States and China,” Miliband said.
Eastward Expansion
The 27-nation EU should prioritize ties with the U.S, China and Russia, expand eastwards and boost efforts to address global conflicts and crises, he said.
U.K. newspapers, including the Times and the Guardian, have run stories in the past week quoting unidentified EU diplomats as saying Miliband is a candidate for the post of EU foreign Minister.
Miliband yesterday denied he’s in the frame, while endorsing Blair, prime minister from 1997 to 2007, for the role of EU president.
“I am not a candidate, and I am not available,” Miliband said in an interview with the British Broadcasting Corp. “It would be very good for Britain as well as very good for Europe if Tony Blair were chosen.”
Prime Minister Gordon Brown’s spokesman Simon Lewis today reiterated Brown’s support for Blair’s candidacy.
“If the role is created and if Tony Blair wishes to be a candidate, then the prime minister and government would be completely supportive,” Lewis said.
Appointments have been delayed by the refusal of the Czech president to ratify the treaty.
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